I did lot of model building.
It is fun build and see the engine come to life. Then find a use for engine is more fun. The next step is finding all the little things need to make whole thing work.
Dave
What is your purpose in getting into the hobby of building model engines?
- Thread starter minh-thanh
- Start date
Help Support Home Model Engine Machinist Forum:
I did lot of model building.
It is fun build and see the engine come to life. Then find a use for engine is more fun. The next step is finding all the little things need to make whole thing work.
Dave
I like hobby
I like see what was before steam and engines . Then how used then build the rest or just research.
Like Kohler power plants at 32 volts DC. It was a battery charger and power plant . Then what the 32 battery was used besides a battery for lighting.
FYI
They use made fans at 32 volts next appliances for kicking was 32 volt DC radio. The most interesting was 32 volt DC motor generator to AC 60hz 120 volt.
Just more fun knowing how a engine is used. Some are easy see how a engines like a tractor engine
Dave
I like see what was before steam and engines . Then how used then build the rest or just research.
Like Kohler power plants at 32 volts DC. It was a battery charger and power plant . Then what the 32 battery was used besides a battery for lighting.
FYI
They use made fans at 32 volts next appliances for kicking was 32 volt DC radio. The most interesting was 32 volt DC motor generator to AC 60hz 120 volt.
Just more fun knowing how a engine is used. Some are easy see how a engines like a tractor engine
Dave
I start with model aircraft and engines back in the 1960's. It was nice to something you work on coming to life.
It nice small. Work I did was very big had cast iron wheels over 1,000 pounds. Not a lot of fun. I don not think any one would build a model of what I design and manufacture.
Today working smaller engines and other projects. is a lot more fun.
I never try money off the hobby it take away for injoyment of hobby.
Dave
JohnBDownunder
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Mar 1, 2012
- Messages
- 111
- Reaction score
- 34
Went to a Tech school in the 50s so got exposed to messing with metal.
Alas a young family and mortgage payments ruled out play toys.
THEN, retirement and finally I got a cheap Chinese 7X14 mini lathe followed a few years later with a Seig X2 mini mill. Machining on a shoe string budget happily making swarf and several simple engines that actually run.
Yep, got the usual, "But what does it do?" but my answers varied from, "goes round and round" to Keeps me out of the house.
Now 83, still pottering. OH, my avatar is a paddle wheeler chugging around in my son's pool.
Alas a young family and mortgage payments ruled out play toys.
THEN, retirement and finally I got a cheap Chinese 7X14 mini lathe followed a few years later with a Seig X2 mini mill. Machining on a shoe string budget happily making swarf and several simple engines that actually run.
Yep, got the usual, "But what does it do?" but my answers varied from, "goes round and round" to Keeps me out of the house.
Now 83, still pottering. OH, my avatar is a paddle wheeler chugging around in my son's pool.
I have been absent for a few months and just came back and re-read this topic from beginning to end. A lot of different opinions and they are all fine. My wife participates in a lot of hot-topic forums and groups (something I choose not to do) and I was talking to her about the controversies earlier in this topic. She told me that she uses a personal rule whenever reading someone's post, to read it "with the most charitable interpretation in mind." She is a smart woman. And reading back on some of the things I wrote, I might have been a bit too touchy in my posts. I will do my best to avoid that and stay positive in the future.
Lloyd
Lloyd
I got into the IC engine thing when I wasn't even a teenager. An older gentleman down the street who worked on small engines gave me and my brother each a worn out engine to take apart or do whatever we wanted with them. I started meticulously taking mine apart, studying each piece and trying to figure out how it all worked. I was quite intrigued and that was the beginning of the hobby for me.
My brother, on the other hand, took a few bolts out of his, got bored, and finished the job with a big ball peen hammer.
My brother, on the other hand, took a few bolts out of his, got bored, and finished the job with a big ball peen hammer.
![MeshMagic 3D Free 3D Modeling Software [Download]](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/B1U+p8ewjGS._SL500_.png)
I like vary small engines. The size if drop it on your foot and you not you think getting a x-ray and your wife is dragging you hospital
and keg of pain pills 
and hoping they work. FOR A HOBBY Also not so small you need a microscope if drop the parts on the floor
Dave
Last edited:
I have to make things , if I can't get in the workshop then I will make something in the kitchen , currently steak pies.
I have always loved miniature items , bonsai trees especially , so I guess model making brings everything together.
Dan.
I have always loved miniature items , bonsai trees especially , so I guess model making brings everything together.
Dan.
I like build things .
I will never own ship 🛳 or boat 🛥. I first start with model engines. If saw something things I built you surprised as you see on my avatar one smaller one.
Now I am smaller engines and navigation equipment.
It is a lot cheaper and inside. Staying in 8x11 paper size also health.
The one researching is a hot air engine and solar for heat. Building a solar power system is lot Cheaper in small size. At first look it simple. I had designed a solar steam but to make work right it take a lot parts.
My last project was a { TRANSITOR VTVM }. I do do little ones in-between major ones. Like last year and June of was working setup and making parts for new lathe. Now building a Sundial and Astrolabe cobo. While reaching for next project , FYI Most never get reached engineering and drawings. When build something it will work off drawings board
Dave
Your mention of bonsai caught my. I think they have an almost magical aura. Years ago I was on a business trip to Shanghai and was lucky enough to have one of the young engineers at their foundry take me on a day trip to the ancient city of Suzhou. The Tiger Hill Pagoda was the very busy attraction but off out of the way was a circular opening thru a big wall. I thought I saw bonsai in there & he said yes. It was beautiful and deserted of people. I was dumb founded at the hundreds of very old bonsai. I told him that in America such a garden would be packed with people. He got a thoughtful and excited look and said," ahh, I have connections in shipping...." Who knows what might have happened. Do a Google search on Suzhou bonsai gardens and you'll see what I mean.
Lloyd
I agree that Bonsai are amazing , I have a Japanese Acer which is about 20 years old now. I started it in a nice container but after about 5 years I appreciated how much devotion was required to keep it healthy so I set it free ( planted it in the garden).
It has thrived but remains small because I cut it's tap root.
My ambition is to build a garden railway at Gauge one scale , I am building a small batch of British Merchant Navy Class locomotives which are quite well progressed but still plenty of engineering left to do.
Dan.
It has thrived but remains small because I cut it's tap root.
My ambition is to build a garden railway at Gauge one scale , I am building a small batch of British Merchant Navy Class locomotives which are quite well progressed but still plenty of engineering left to do.
Dan.
Henry K
Well-Known Member
I like sundials. When my wife was a teacher, I built a sundial for her class. With longitude correction, time of year correction (the figure 8 printed on some globes), proper latitude construction, and proper setup it was accurate within less than 5 minutes error. Get a good reference on this. there are many.
I too had a spell of making sundials , I had set up to etch brass sheet to produce individual nameplates for a series of business awards that I had an order for, afterward we used the kit to produce copper rheumatism bracelets and a few sundials too.
Etching or as it is sometimes called chemical machining can be a very useful tool for model engineering.
With some ingenuity parts can be made from metals that are to hard to machine.
A company I worked for many years ago produced tapered parts from hardened tool steel by withdrawing the pieces from the etchant bath a constant rate.
the tolerances can be finer than finish grinding.
Dan.
Etching or as it is sometimes called chemical machining can be a very useful tool for model engineering.
With some ingenuity parts can be made from metals that are to hard to machine.
A company I worked for many years ago produced tapered parts from hardened tool steel by withdrawing the pieces from the etchant bath a constant rate.
the tolerances can be finer than finish grinding.
Dan.
That is impressive!
The biggest problem with cost of doing etchant. At with new printer/computers has price and time.
If noted on sundies I used photo paper and plexiglass.
See https://www.homemodelenginemachinist.com/threads/navigation-and-sundiel-because-of-health.36646/
5 minutes in time or angle Both are great
If ever plan to build a Sundial I have Table in Excel 20° to 85° latitude.
Dave
Last edited:
- Joined
- Jun 21, 2023
- Messages
- 7
- Reaction score
- 7
I went to a very small Catholic school and we had no other classes other than the basic 3R's. No gym, no playground, just an art class for one hour on Fridays.
When I got kicked out of there, I had to go to a public middle school to finish 8th grade. They had a strange think called SHOP class. First class, printing. I now was going to be a printer. Then a class called Metal Shop?? Well! New toy's! Arc welders, gas welders, forges, big machines that make blue smoking chips and then make loud bangs, I'm in.
I made on simple steam engine and boiler in H.S shop. Never got to finish a "elbow engine" before I started Tech Center Machine classes. Learned that a Tool & Diemaker was at the top of the heap. Off I go. Started on large class "A" outer body skin dies. for the big 3. Got into CAD when that first started and realized I might be out of a job at some point. Quit my job with the original company after 25 yrs to learn solid model design, doing every things from very small to very large Prog dies. Designing Aerospace machine and test fixtures, and stuff. Tried different places and was never as happy as I was on the floor. Covid. Though I would be the first to go. Nope still here. Company shut down for awhile, might as well retire.
Time to finish the elbow engine. As I also shoot precision pistol so I do gunsmith work on these pistols. Did a couple of Stuarts, a radial wig-wag, and have started the Snow Tandem.
That is what happened. All because of this engine.
Mart
When I got kicked out of there, I had to go to a public middle school to finish 8th grade. They had a strange think called SHOP class. First class, printing. I now was going to be a printer. Then a class called Metal Shop?? Well! New toy's! Arc welders, gas welders, forges, big machines that make blue smoking chips and then make loud bangs, I'm in.
I made on simple steam engine and boiler in H.S shop. Never got to finish a "elbow engine" before I started Tech Center Machine classes. Learned that a Tool & Diemaker was at the top of the heap. Off I go. Started on large class "A" outer body skin dies. for the big 3. Got into CAD when that first started and realized I might be out of a job at some point. Quit my job with the original company after 25 yrs to learn solid model design, doing every things from very small to very large Prog dies. Designing Aerospace machine and test fixtures, and stuff. Tried different places and was never as happy as I was on the floor. Covid. Though I would be the first to go. Nope still here. Company shut down for awhile, might as well retire.
Time to finish the elbow engine. As I also shoot precision pistol so I do gunsmith work on these pistols. Did a couple of Stuarts, a radial wig-wag, and have started the Snow Tandem.
That is what happened. All because of this engine.
Mart
Attachments
Last edited:
@Martin Urbanski01 Great story! In the Warren, Dearborn, Hamtramck area? Looking at the elbow engine, maybe those Friday art classes paid off a bit, too.
Whilst reading about the models is interesting I find reading about the modellers more so.
Having always been interested in science and studying chemistry at school , I started my working life as a laboratory technician in the coal mining industry.
This was odd really because I had been making models for years and my best exam results were for "engineering theory and practice".
But the chemistry and a series of redundancies took me from the coal to the aircraft industry and working on Concord , from there to the polymer industry and working for Thiokol and from there to the waste disposal industry and eventually to the scrap metal reclaimation industry.
At this point I think this is probably boring so I won't write any more unless asked.
Oh and merry christmas all.
Dan.
Having always been interested in science and studying chemistry at school , I started my working life as a laboratory technician in the coal mining industry.
This was odd really because I had been making models for years and my best exam results were for "engineering theory and practice".
But the chemistry and a series of redundancies took me from the coal to the aircraft industry and working on Concord , from there to the polymer industry and working for Thiokol and from there to the waste disposal industry and eventually to the scrap metal reclaimation industry.
At this point I think this is probably boring so I won't write any more unless asked.
Oh and merry christmas all.
Dan.
modeng2000
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Nov 14, 2008
- Messages
- 148
- Reaction score
- 40
Dan, dont stop there. It is always interesting to hear of peoples progression through various occupations.
John
John
I am always interested in WHY people change jobs, particularly actual changes in career. Were you consciously seeking a change, did an opportunity just present itself, got a promotion, did the company have a layoff or went under, did you have to move? It seems that often changing jobs was something that we were forced to do, or just led into, not something we were thinking hard about doing. After all, who hasn't run across the person who has been whining and complaining about the same job that they have been in for 20 years, LOL?
Thanks,
Lloyd
